Eminence - Logo/Brand Design

Identity and branding for this company is confidential at the moment as the the nature of the business ideas and concept.

How ever this project has again allowed me to push my skills an ability in illustrator and using various new print techniques,

I created a number of logo and brand designs, my favourite was not selected, this seems to usual with designers favourites.

Selected Design Logo for Eminence

Client Led Briefs

Kelowe fan manufacturing systems, requested a catalogue page to be built specific to requirements, through email correspondence the clients requirements of this page including all technical data and images was collated and i began to re-construct the page.

Although layout design and content was already pre-determined this page, it still taught me a finer accuracy, the final page design was signed off by the company.

Brief - Encounters

Encounters requested a photography booklet and identity, for an exhibition event, this experience allowed me to create another logo and apply a set of accompanying page styles to the booklet.

Other promotional pieces could swing the balance on the final idea selected, my promotional idea was snap shut wrist bands, however i failed to provide the sample, i was organised enough to have the sample but missed the opportunity when the work was being taken away.

Being more organised and having the ideas well thought though will be an advantage in future.

Brief - Knife Crime

The objective of the knife crime campaign is to educate and promote a safer environment using visual communication, with each designer on this project submitting a different style and approach, i wanted to target the general attitude to the stereotypical person who might feel the need to carry a knife.

It was useful to my skill set to create a poster element and logo, this allowed me to further experiment with design, i found it difficult to draw my ideas and then apply them to the mac software with enough accuracy to get the results i wanted, this was down to poor drawing skills, and little previous use of illustrator, at this point i realised i was out of practice with drawing, and will improve in future.

Events Banner

The aim of the events banner i created for Europa Spares Ltd, was to provide an overhead visual representation of the company including parts or services on offer, the items selected, summarises the nature of the company, incorporating the company logo and branding elements.

It is used at various classic & kit car events throughout the year and catches the attention of the customer, clearly identifying the company's essence.

Creating the banner showed me how to prepare and create large store front artwork, in practice i now know how to keep file size at a minimal whilst maintaining optimum print quality.

Networking Skills

An event was held in the university to showcase design talents within our group to Coors brewery's design department, this was a fantastic exercise for communicating ideas behind work created and enhanced my communication skills.

I was disappointed with my level of engagement as the clients had a limited time to see everyones work, and i underestimated, how little time they had, whilst i was being patient, on reflection i should of got stuck in there much sooner to present myself, next time i am in a group networking situation i will do so.

University Lectures - Slipstream

I attended a lecture by Andy McKeown who demonstrated software he created called slipstream, this software randomises fragments of images and overlaps them using an algorithm, its javascript coding that created a piece of moving artwork that is unique each time it is displayed.

The software was given to student for free, and i sought possibilities to create visual communication as a part of my visual studies.

Intended for an event in local galleries to showcase artwork and photography, this project showed me how to overcome software issues, it was useful to understand that when software its being used live, it will create and effect unique in the moment.

Brief - National Trust

The class was given verbal instruction to create innovative out of the box designs for a brochure, this was an opportunity to explore new ideas and techniques.

My design ideas were thought out and created digitally, however i reflected on my work too late and would of made changes, that could of enhanced the overall quality of my work, also being part time and unable to present my work myself, tho was a disadvantage as i was unable to explain my concept, however a good piece of design, need not be explained?

The experience was good as i had to create vector formats that i could use for print, obtaining quality support material such as logos at print standard was difficult so it was re-created.

After completing this brief and many others i think i would produce better and more efficient work in future.

D&AD - Competition Brief

The D&AD competition brief i selected was called Little White Lies, as this was to create an Illustration for cover of Little White Lies magazine, i chose this brief because my i had never before produced illustration, and saw it as an opportunity to practice.

My first draft was visually ok, but on reflection the brief was requesting something a little more creative, and out of the box, with that in mind i created a second piece of work after discussing my work with a tutor i produced a far better result, this taught me to fully understand the requirements of the brief or client and carefully selecting the right idea or solution well in advance.

Upon further reflection of the competition winner this year, i have an even better understanding of the competition, and the elements that helped success, i will bear this in mind for all my future projects.

YCN - Competition Brief

This brief was to create a piece of visual communication for a manufacturing company, although i was not entirely satisfied with my submitted design, i picked up a great deal of insight working on this project as initially i wanted to great a design beyond my ability, and soon found out when i ran out of time to compete the project, eager to apply myself and submit a piece of work i change my idea to a more viable and achievable solution within the time scale i had given myself to complete the brief.

I explored my idea and produced a piece of work within four hours before the deadline, this showed me how well i worked under pressure and how much work i can achieve, whilst also outlining areas where i can better myself for similar instances in future.

A high points was submitting work and a low point was realising better ways in which i could of got the intended message across in hindsight.

Assignments - Copyright Essay

The copyright essay was requested by Jo-Latham and Lance Scott-Jones, to gain essential knowledge on copyright law, i found the learning experience to be essential as a creative practitioner, and learnt good codes of working practice to protect my own creative works and ideas, and what types of media can and can't be protected, also what level of work qualifies.

I reviewed two cases of copyright infringement, which led me to understand some grey areas of what is considered a direct infringement.

I also developed a better understanding of copyright, demonstrating some of my knowledge on the subject using this essay, i will keep up to date with new changes of This Act of law moving forward, and not under estimate it's implications.

Assignments - Time Line

The Time line assignment was given out to explore artistic, social and political influences on design over a significant period, i chose to focus on Graphic design, what it means, what it is and how its applied to my own work directly.

I researched some of the most influential designers over the last 20th century, and explored styles developed during milestones in Graphic design, i became more aware of the Swiss style of design, and developed a better understanding of typography and the ways in which designers chose to apply their own influences to these styles, personal influences has had a great impact on some of the best designers staying true to their interests and strengths.

It has been directly applied to my work, with a fuller knowledge of avant-garde and how simple design, can work as well as complicated ones.

In practice i have learnt to better use typography, and work outside normal logical realms of design thinking, this has also helped me to understand my own design style and strengthen abilities.

Choosing Graphic-design being relatively new to design the was a great choice for me, i explored many new concepts and gathered a great deal of influence to enhance my skills in producing functional visual comunictation.

Professional Practice Using Adobe Indesign

During work on a 156 page catalogue i have experienced major software issues during my project using Indesign CS5, with my document becoming corrupt and constantly crashing, the importance of backing up and imploring strategies to ensure my work is protected has been invaluable, i have learnt how to overcome some of these types of errors that could potentially be disastrous whilst meeting tight deadlines.

Here are some of the possible issues related to corrupt elements within an indesign file.

Missing Font Selection List?

Supplied file contains a clipping path

This showed me a clipping mask can exist within a jpeg, it became apparent when i edited the original file.

Modal Dialogue Issue

Corrupt Page Element

Resolving issues in story editor 

Indesign performance tracking

Corrupt paste board

Invalid font licence error message

After experiencing these technical issues with Indesign i am confident knowing how to recover my work and prevent corruption in the future, the corrupted file elements can happen when Indesign does not know the formatting or conversion elements from using plugins or copy and paste from third party sources, also the older the file the more information is stored in hidden log files and can become corrupt without any influence, on large documents a regular save as, procedure can dramatically reduce file size temporarily as this clears the files logs of information stored in relation to the processes handled by the original file.

Self Promotion - McCammon Designs

The self promotion brief is my first project i have researched, this is a fantastic challenge, i will have to find out exactly what is required and rise to the required standards, looking at other students work has helped me to realise ways i would approach presentation of my work and understand that every designer has a different style and method of working, my styles and method are being tested as i try to produce my first brand identity for myself, I'm thinking i want a clean look that invites the customer with some elements of design but not over designed, just simple but effective is my goal at this stage, i hope for my work to stand out and show prominence with a clear brand, many online designers with high quality work in there portfolio have some sort of identity this will be considered during design processes, does a highly designed website of brand offer more opportunities than a simple site with great work? sometimes quite the opposite could be what the customer feels more comfortable with.

What is my goal? from logo brand identity and company ethics as a graphic designer in a highly competitive industry it simply must stand out be memorable and offer clients the design services that drive business success, i understand the importance or corporate identity and its strengths.

Consideration of domain names and what i will call myself? i like the idea of not being James McCammon designs, i think a name like Bullet Designs or Swift Studios seems more professional however mccammondesigns domain is available i have searched domains using heart Internet and made a decision to go with mccammondesigns and i will incorporate the letters M and D into my logo shape (see sketches in PF).

Upon researching other graphic design specialists i really like the high end quality of this company attitude design and their own logo being a simplified shape, this is like my own design style my logo designs will also start out as a simple shape demo the many sketched ideas ref (my sketches in PF)

Ref - [online] http://www.attitudedesign.co.uk/ - 19/10/11

I'm finding it difficult using illustrator for the first time, but what is more frustrating is taking my sketched designs to the mac and not quite getting the same results, but i know its just practice using this system and the benefits of vector formatting is a great asset to know the artwork will be looking its best, in eps. or ai. file types. Its similar to Indesign where I'm most comfortable working. However finding my way around the programme and getting used to working at the correct standard required should be challenging and offer the development of essential skills.

Feeling more confident creating logo designs in illustrator now, however i have realised I've taken too much time working on logo designs and found it more difficult to choose one i really like, the opinion of others has been very helpful, but ultimately it will be my final decision and i will be sure i know how and why I've mad my choice and feel confident in sticking to my guns.

Graphic Designer Business Equipment

Starting the course i did not have access to my own computer and i knew i needed to find a solution fast after a long and painful process of what would be better for me to use a Mac or a PC vs the costs. Both machines have advantages and disadvantages, however my final choice was to buy a Mac Pro as this enables me to work from anywhere and use the licence for the software i have access too, an as all the computers at the university are iMac this seems the best choice for compatibility and improving workflow, i use the iMac at work and continue to improve and learn on a daily basis.

My equipment was purchased under a 3 year business lease agreement with the advantage of spreading the cost being fully insured in case of any accident or dataloss, this was with the intention of setting up McCammon Designs as a sole trader company in which case the full amount paid for the equipment would be claimable back under business expenses, as i understand without this equipment the business would cease to function and is therefore tax refundable, although this can only be backdated 3 months. On reflection i realised how much extra the equipment would cost me and felt taking out the business lease was not the right decision for me as i would like to own the equipment far sooner, understanding why i took this risk has been invalid. At the time i had no way of producing the work for my course and had no money or other support and resources, this was my chosen solution and i learnt the importance of thinking things through before signing contacts and keeping an eye on the main goals.

Hands on Hygiene

As i understand this brief is to help create a strong awareness of the importance of washing hands within a hospital environment, i have obtained copies of the 2011 clean you hands campaign and researched online different ideas that have been done before, my first initial ideas had been done before so i decided to take a different approach, after speaking with a nurse currently working at the NHS Burton hospital with regards to how she felt about the hands on hygiene campaign, it became apparent that it was not a new concept and the campaign has been around for some years, after reflecting on my discussion, my design ideas changed to deliver a more simple message by creating a characters called 'Drip' and one called 'Drop' i have made my series of posters and campaign identity based on these characters, with the basis of forming a memorable campaign with a brighter message than previous years.

During this brief i have created my first character and series of posters, i feel my computer design work is getting stronger and further development of my characters could be advantageous by making them more 3D and adding lighting effects. However the simple design shapes used will create a more catching effect, i have understood my change in designs and approach after speaking to NHS staff looking at the walls within the hospital, as this differs from my mind maps and sketched concept ideas.